Darkness and Light
by In Darkness Is Light
Summary: Darkness wasn't evil. It was only misunderstood, just like them. [Implied KouichiRika]


DISCLAIMER: I OWN NOTHING EXCEPT THIS STORY!

WARNING: NO EXPLANATION OF ALTERNATE UNIVERSES GIVEN!

Staring up at the blank night sky admiring the darkness, Rika blinked. Thoughtfully, she wondered how there could be anyone afraid of darkness. Yet there were many who were and to some extent she understood their fear.

Most of them had lived in the light all their lives so the darkness had brought on an uncomfortable mystery. In truth, none of the people she knew were afraid of the darkness itself, they were just afraid of what could be in the darkness that they were unable to see.

For people like Rika however, who had grown accustomed to the darkness, it was the light that most frightened her. You see, in the darkness, while you may not know what lurks around, what lurks around doesn't know that you're there either. Darkness is like a blanket that protects you and in it no one can see your weaknesses or shatter your defences without your consent. You are safe.

In the light, you either pretend up a new person for the world to see, or you risk having your true self exposed to the world, risk having them see and examine every little part of you. And trust me, the enemies hiding in the darkness are a lot less dangerous than those hiding in the light.

Deep in thought as she was, Rika had been awoken by a voice.

"Uh…hi," it said, "would you mind if I stayed here too?"

Looking up, trying to get a face to match the voice, Rika saw that "it" was a boy. He had fair skin and blackish-blue hair going to just past his ears. But what most intrigued Rika were his eyes. They too were midnight blue in colour and in them Rika saw what greatly resembled the darkness she'd just been thinking about. Realizing that the boy was still waiting for an answer, she quickly responded, "It's a public park. You don't have to ask."

"Oh," replied the boy, "sorry if I bothered you but I didn't want you to awake from your daydream and see some strange guy sitting beside you".

Mentally hitting herself for being so stupid, she apologized, "It's alright. You do have a point there".

The boy smiled at her. "My name's Kouichi, nice to meet you."

Rika was deciding whether or not she could trust this stranger. The boy seemed nice enough, but then again, she'd met plenty of jerks and pervs who'd seemed "nice enough". The thing that finally sealed the deal for her were his eyes. Rika found herself mesmerized and unable to look away from his midnight blue depths. Maybe it was the prospect of the darkness in them that made her feel comfortable or maybe it was just the fact that the night made them look safe. Whatever it was, Rika had made up her mind.

"Name's Rika"

"That's a nice name. If you'd like to tell me Rika, what are you doing out so late at night?"

"I could ask you the same question".

"True enough, but aren't you afraid?"

"Afraid of what?" Rika said icily, the alarms in her head going off, telling her that maybe she'd made a mistake in trusting this boy her age.

"Night, the darkness I guess" Kouichi replied in the same gentle tone he'd spoken with all this time.

Feeling relieved that he wasn't a pervert, Rika calmed down just enough that she was agitated once more by his previous comment.

Harshly, she replied, "Only fools are afraid of the dark"

Surprised by this statement, Kouichi turned to her. "Why?" he asked.

"Because there's nothing to fear" Rika stated as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"If there's nothing to fear, then why are so many people afraid of it?"

"Because they don't understand it. They think the worst and most evil things lurk around in the darkness. They don't even realize that the light is so much more dangerous. People are afraid of not knowing what's going on around them and are so focused on others that they don't even realize-"

Kouichi cut her off. "-that the darkness is really protecting them, acting as a shield against the evil world outside. It's protecting their defences".

Rika was amazed. Kouichi had just taken the words right out of her mouth. Breathlessly, she replied, "Yeah, that's right".

Smiling at her once again, Kouichi posed another question. "So, do you know why we're not scared of the darkness? Why it doesn't affect us in such a negative way?"

"Because we're comfortable in the darkness. We understand its true purpose. We don't want the world to see our true selves, only the façade we put up everyday. We're not afraid of the darkness because we understand it" she replied.

"Wow…" Kouichi, looked at her amazed.

"What?"

"It's amazing how well we understand each other. Now let me ask you this; are you afraid of the light?"

Shifting uncomfortably, Rika remained silent in response.

"So you are? I'm not surprised. I used to be afraid too. Light was my worst enemy and now it's my best friend".

"How?" Rika asked, turning to get a glimpse of his face. In the moonlight she saw his fair skin illuminated and in his eyes shone something new, something that hadn't been there before and she wasn't sure if she liked it; it was light.

"Well," Kouichi continued, "it's the same thing as the darkness. It's just misunderstood. You see, light and darkness are meant to co-exist. They feed off each other's strengths and weaknesses. Light makes it possible for darkness to exist therefore it also protects you. And in turn, darkness lets light exist. The two of them are wiser than anything else out there. But most importantly, they understand each other. Though," Kouichi chuckled, "it took me a while to understand this".

Nodding thoughtfully, Rika responded. "I can see why, it's very wise."

"And it's very true. Now you, as someone who's accustomed to darkness you understand that the darkness shields you, as do I. But those accustomed to the light often do not understand its true purpose. Many also don't understand nor light nor darkness and they never will. In their minds, some are convinced that darkness and light are opposing forces, in constant battle with one another for dominance. They don't know that both were meant to live in harmony. But, if you can understand both light and darkness Rika, then you can overcome your fear of either."

"You know what Kouichi?"

"What?"

"You're pretty amazing" she smiled up at him, glad that she'd found someone this wise to help her see the truth about the light.

Grinning at her, he simply said, "Glad I could be of help"

"I guess it really does take one child of darkness to make another 'see the light', so to speak"

"You know why though Rika?"

And in unison they replied, "Because we understand each other"

Giggling lightly Rika said, "Wow Kouichi, I'm really glad I met you."

"I'm really glad I met you too," he smiled then continued, "Hey look!"

"What?"

"You just let down your defences and you're in the darkness!"

"Well, there is some light here," Rika teased, "but I guess you're right"

Looking down at her watch, Rika noticed it was 11:30 pm. "Oh man, I've got to get going!" she said.

"Oh, don't go…" Kouichi pleaded.

Looking at him quizzically, Rika asked, "Why not?"

"I don't know. I guess I had so much fun talking with you and all and I wanted to get to know you more beyond the light and darkness principle. That, and I wanted to show you how beautiful it is when darkness turns to light."

Thinking about this, Rika was weighing the pros and cons of staying. In the end the pros won. In truth, she too had had fun talking with Kouichi. It had been a while since she'd felt so well understood, and quite frankly she wasn't sure if she should be frightened or comforted by this. "Yeah, alright," Rika replied, having made up her mind, "I'll stay"

It was summer anyway and she was sure that she wouldn't freeze to death. Her mom also let her camp out here in the summer sometimes too, so Rika knew that she wouldn't be too worried. And if Rumiko was, she could always reach Rika on her cell.

Happy with her decision, Kouichi flashed her a smile.

The night they spent in each other's company had proven to be a fun time for both of them. In the darkness they had both let some of their defences down and though neither of them would admit it, it had felt good. Most of the night they talked about their lives, Kouichi fascinating Rika with his stories about him and Kouji, and Kouichi fascinated by the life Rika led.

As the dawn drew closer, they grew more comfortable around each other until they finally started moving closer to one another. By the time sunrise came, they were seated right next to each other, both tired yet happy. Kouichi's head rested on Rika's shoulder and Rika's head rested on top of Kouichi's.

At sunrise, the two of them watched in awe at the beautiful colours that illuminated the once black skies and stared in wonder at how the black night had so quickly turned into the golden day. It truly was a beautiful sight.

Around 8 am, Rika decided that it was time for her to go home. She stood up, as did Kouichi and they shook hands. "It was really nice meeting you Kouichi. Do you think we'll see each other again?" Rika asked him.

"Meet me here at 5:30 pm tomorrow?" he responded with a question.

"It's a date," Rika nodded, "but why 5:30?"

"I want to show you how beautiful it is when light turns to darkness" he grinned cheesily at her.

Laughing while rolling her eyes, Rika replied, "Ok, now are you going to walk me home or what?"

"Yes ma'am!" Kouichi answered, giving a mock salute.

And the two walked home together, feeling the effects of both the light's warmth and the darkness's protection around them.


End file.
